PROGRESS AND RENEWAL
Streamlined Process Improves Investigative Service to Members and the Public
As a regulator, we’re continually looking for new ways to simplify and improve our processes. We want to better serve our stakeholders — the public, Members, and Permit Holders — by making our operations as effective and efficient as we can. One of the ways we’ve done this is through a recent process review of APEGA’s Investigative Committee, which plays an essential role in the full discipline process. When APEGA receives complaints against Members or Permit Holders, the Investigative Committee reviews the evidence, investigates, and decides whether the complaints advance to the discipline process. The number of complaints APEGA receives against Members and Permit Holders is modest in relation to the size of the membership. But the work done by our Investigative Committee is significant. In 2015, 66 complaints were filed — that’s up 83 per cent from five years ago, when there were 36 complaints. (APEGA’s professional membership is more than 30 per cent larger today than it was in 2010.) Not only are there more complaints being made, but the files are becoming more complex. Some complaints allege significant breaches of professional ethics, like the fraudulent stamping of documents. Others allege unskilled practice. Both types of complaints take significant effort to investigate. As well as Members and Permit Holders, the committee may investigate full engineering or geoscience projects, or other matters involving the professions that stand to impact the public. In light of its important role, the committee instigated a review of its processes. In July 2015, APEGA formed a working group made up of Professional Members, APEGA staff, and the committee’s legal counsel. Over about six months, the working group examined committee processes to ensure that they: • are thorough and conducted efficiently • are fully compliant with the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act (EGP Act) and other applicable legal principles, including the duty of fairness
• are clear and simple to understand for both complainants and Members under investigation (MUIs) • clearly define all the steps in an investigation • promote public confidence in APEGA’s ability to investigate and act on complaints • are transparent and fair In April, the committee accepted the working group’s report. It included recommended changes to the investigative process that streamline how the committee operates and improve how it communicates with complainants and MUIs, while maintaining full compliance with the Act and General Regulations. For example, some steps in the investigative process that the EGP Act does not require have been eliminated, and certain administrative tasks of the committee can now be delegated to APEGA investigative staff — changes that should help speed up investigations and reduce delays. The working group also recommended that the committee appoint investigative panels as soon as possible after a complaint has been received. The panels are made up of committee members — usually three — who investigate individual complaints on behalf of the full committee. Another improvement, the creation of new brochures, will help complainants and MUIs better understand how the process works, including how they will be involved and what they should expect along the way. Copies are available in the Edmonton and Calgary APEGA offices.
FAIR AND TRANSPARENT
APEGA is fortunate to have skilled investigative staff and Member volunteers committed to implementing the recommended changes and creating an investigative process that meets and exceeds legislative requirements. The changes will ensure that our investigations are fair and transparent, while increasing public and Member confidence.
SUMMER 2016 PEG | 45
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